The present invention relates to a passenger car.
The following discussion of related art is provided to assist the reader in understanding the advantages of the invention, and is not to be construed as an admission that this related art is prior art to this invention.
Hybrid technology gains increasingly more importance in the automobile industry. In generally, the term “hybrid” as used in drive technology relates to a combination of different types or processes for driving a system. When drive technology for automobiles is involved, vehicles are referred to which have at least two energy converters and two energy storage systems for propulsion. Examples of energy converters include conventional combustion engines or increasingly popular electric motors. Energy stores normally involve fuel tanks and additional accumulators.
Hybrid electric vehicles thus include for example passenger cars with an electric motor and a combustion engine as energy converters and an accumulator and a fuel tank as energy store. The accumulators are normally lithium-ions-accumulators or nickel-metal hybrid accumulators. The typical accumulator has a box-shaped configuration. The weight proportion of accumulators in passenger cars ranges between 10% and about 40%, amounting to possibly several hundreds kilograms. As a consequence of their substantial weight, accumulators are installed in a lower vehicle area so that the center of gravity of the vehicle is low. A possible position involves for example a placement on the trunk floor behind the rear bench between the wheel wells.
Accumulators which are mounted between the wheel wells can be deformed, when in the event of a crash from the side the spacing between the wheel wells excessively decreases. A mechanically damaged accumulator poses a significant risk potential. In case of damage, internal shorting may be encountered that may cause the housing of the accumulator to melt. The high voltage poses also an acute fire hazard. Damaged accumulators may also cause smoldering fires that may lead to a fire after a certain time interval by way of smoke ignition.
It would therefore be desirable and advantageous to provide an improved passenger car to obviate prior art shortcomings and to provide protection of an electric energy source such as an accumulator, against mechanical damage in the event of an accident or also from the load in the trunk for safety reasons.